ANNVILLE -- A lot of firsts happened Saturday at Arnold Field on the campus of Lebanon Valley College.

First game on the new FieldTurf surface and the first home game on anything other than natural grass in 115 years of LVC football. First game in the Middle Atlantic Conference for the brand-new Misericordia College program. Thanks to a vicious storm that hit just as the first half wrapped, the first (albeit unexpected) usage of the new lights at Arnold, during the second half. Oh, and the first points scored in the history of Misericordia football.

But those numerous firsts didn’t change the one thing the mattered most to the participants — the (expected) result. LVC rolled over Misericordia 47-7 in the MAC opener for both.

LVC moved to 2-0 and 1-0 in the MAC. The Cougars, declawed by 70 a week ago at Gettysburg, fell to 0-2, 0-1.

“It rained like cats and dogs out here and it didn’t change a thing,” veteran LVC head coach Jim Monos said of the new surface. “If we were still playing on grass, it would have been a different ballgame ... I don’t know if these kids really understand the significance. But we talked about the history of football here. ... First game with turf and lights. They’ll look back some day and say ‘I played in the first game [with that].”

LVC junior wideout Joey Miller (Lower Dauphin) caught five balls for 81 yards and one touchdown from senior quarterback Leo Kyte, who looked sharp in his first home game as a starter before both departed for good by halftime and the 58-minute weather delay that ensued. Miller opened the scoring with 4:53 left in the opening quarter by hauling in a 22-yard pass, capping a 12-play, 85-yard drive.

“We’re all working hard to be supportive, and Leo’s just been great with this opportunity,” Miller said. “After sitting for three years [behind the departed Colt Zarilla], he’s been playing really good for us.”

Evan Fink was LVC’s goal line battering ram, plunging in for touchdowns of 3 and 2 yards. His first wrapped an 11-play, 95-yard drive midway through the second quarter to give the Flying Dutchmen a 14-0 edge. His second, at the end of half, made it 27-0.

In between, sophomore quarterback Brian Murphy showed promise running the offense, directing a drive that end with a 24-yard scoring strike to Jake Zeigler (Mechanicsburg).

After kicking off its history with a 99-minute, 46-second scoring drought, Misericordia finally broke the goose egg on quarterback Jeffrey Puckett’s 4-yard toss to tight end Dean Lucchesi with 5:14 to play in the third quarter trailing 34-0. The Cougars’ offense was able to move the ball at times and showed flashes of promise, especially sophomore running back Cody Lamoreaux, who rushed for 75 yards on nine totes, an 8.3 per-carry average.

But as far as highlights for the fledgling visitors, that was about it.

This day belonged to the Dutchmen.

CENTENNIAL CONFERENCE

Gettysburg 48, Ursinus 7:The Bullets rolled the Bears in Collegeville behind senior tailback Ted Delia’s 127 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Kody Smith added 129 rushing yards and a score as the Bullets jumped out to a 36-0 lead over Ursinus (1-1, 0-1) in the Centennial Conference opener for both. Gettysburg (2-0, 1-0) has outscored its opponents 118-7 in two games.

Dickinson 24, Juniata 17: Jake Myers returned a blocked punt five yards for a touchdown with 52 seconds left to snap a tie give the Red Devils the win. It was the second punt block returned for a score in the fourth quarter for Dickinson. Will Erikson did the same for Devils (1-1, 1-0), from 11 yards out, at the start of fourth for a 17-10 lead.

Muhlenberg 21, F&M 0: Dan Deighan’s 43-yard TD pass to Isaiah Vaughn on the opening drive of the game would be all the host Muhls would need. Dips junior QB E.J. Schneider was 12 of 19 for 92 yards before departing with an injury. Freshman Anthony Carlucci stepped in took the first snaps of his college career, going 10 of 12 for 74 yards for F&M (1-1, 0-1).

PSAC

View full sizeBILL SMITH, Shippensburg UniversityMike Frenette had another big day in Shippensburg's second straight victory.

Shippensburg 55, Slippery Rock 35: The Red Raiders (2-0) hung 41 first-half points on The Rock (1-1) at Seth Grove Stadium. Ship QB Zach Zulli had another prolific outing, throwing for 348 yards on 22 of 41 passing while connecting for four touchdowns for the second straight week. Jacob Baskerville was Zulli’s favorite target with 126 receving yards and a score. Ship TB Mike Frenette (Cumberland Valley) had TD runs of four and 70 yards, part of his 16-carry, 139-yard day on ground.

Mercyhurst 45, Millersville 7: The Marauders surrendered 379 yards rushing, 213 of those to Brandon Brown-Dukes, as the Lakers (1-1) pummeled the hosts at Biemesderfer Stadium. Mercyhurst rolled to a 31-0 halftime lead. Bishop McDevitt grad Mike Jones caught six balls for 44 yards and rushed for 16 more on five attempts for Millersville (1-1).

Bucknell 19, Marist 17: Brandon Wesley threw for 190 yards and a pair of touchdowns in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., as Bucknell held off late-charging Marist in its season opener. Jeremiah Young (Steel-High) had a game-high 71 yards rushing for the Bison in a strong start to his senior season, while fullback Travis Friend (Cumberland Valley) caught one of Wesley's scoring passes.

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